DAD KICKED ME OUT OF THE HOUSE AT NIGHT WHEN I TOLD HIM I WANTED TO BE AN ACTOR-DR KING’ORI

It hasn’t always been funny business for Dr. King’ori. Before he become the iconic pun doctor, he went through challenges. He spoke to Churchill about his difficult come-up story.

“My dad was a carpenter and my mum was a casual labourer. My dad struggled with alcoholism a lot and I tried to learn from that,” he says.

He also shared there was a point in his life when sleeping hungry was a routine, “I took care of a kid and I got paid Sh20 and I told my mom, she was so happy and we bought food with that. There was a point in our life where sleeping hungry was a routine such that there was a time my mum came with flour and my brother started singing, ‘today we’re eating ugali’ and my mother remembers that dance till today.”

Dr King’ori says that his parents had other dreams for his career, “My mother’s prayer all this time was that I become a doctor. When I left high school, I saw a poster for actors needed. I joined the group, did a few plays for set books and then I got a casual job where I was earning Sh17,000 a month. That was a lot of money at the time.”

He says he still felt passionate about acting in the plays, “I missed acting in plays and I wanted that life, so I quit the job and the family dream of being a doctor fell apart.”

His dad was not impressed, “I was kicked out of home at night, at around 10pm. I was told to go build the life I had chosen.”

He went to his cousin’s place, continued doing plays for set books and as they say, the rest is history.